Ashly Duran
Professor Preston
English 1302-41401
October 23, 2017
Influence the Outcome The brain can be influenced to believe in things it never did before. The idea that a well-written article or a speech given by an influential person can change people’s view on things has been around for a while. Julie Rehmeyer discusses an experiment done by Duncan J. Watts and Peter Sheridan Dodds in The Power of Being Influenced. Rehmeyer writes about the explored claims that the use of things like excellent sales strategies and speeches given by those who love to engage and talk are the most successful at changing people’s minds. Rehmeyer is a highly credible person with a track record that proves her liable for accurate journalism. She …show more content…
It is never a good idea to simply follow blindly behind people who seem to have it all together. People supporting ideas simply because their friends support them is a perfect example of how misinformation is spread. Dodds statement at the end of the article about making a message chat-worthy is important. Dodds is not saying that people should support every idea that their friends are discussing. In fact, that statement would be contradicting what Dodds and Watts discovered in their experiment. Instead, Dodds is opening up the idea that by making a message sociable, it also makes it easier to do …show more content…
Factual research mixed with a great story give people something to talk about. The great story makes them want to continue exploring the message being portrayed while the factual evidence gives them something believable to explore. People feel more confident about sharing ideas and stories that they know to be true. Readers will not give much weight to a post simply because the person who wrote it is funny and interesting. Making the story enjoyable is only half of the work. The rest of the story must support the writers claims, jokes, and ideas with information that can be proven true. A writer who can take scientific information and make it funny and interesting is cleaver. Rehmeyer utilizes the work of Dodds and Watts intellectually while still making it understandable to her audience. It’s important to note that Rehmeyer uses words that are known by her readers. As a science journalist with her background, her vocabulary is expected to be much broader. She focuses on making her work relatable and understandable instead of studious and
Professor Preston
English 1302-41401
October 23, 2017
Influence the Outcome The brain can be influenced to believe in things it never did before. The idea that a well-written article or a speech given by an influential person can change people’s view on things has been around for a while. Julie Rehmeyer discusses an experiment done by Duncan J. Watts and Peter Sheridan Dodds in The Power of Being Influenced. Rehmeyer writes about the explored claims that the use of things like excellent sales strategies and speeches given by those who love to engage and talk are the most successful at changing people’s minds. Rehmeyer is a highly credible person with a track record that proves her liable for accurate journalism. She …show more content…
It is never a good idea to simply follow blindly behind people who seem to have it all together. People supporting ideas simply because their friends support them is a perfect example of how misinformation is spread. Dodds statement at the end of the article about making a message chat-worthy is important. Dodds is not saying that people should support every idea that their friends are discussing. In fact, that statement would be contradicting what Dodds and Watts discovered in their experiment. Instead, Dodds is opening up the idea that by making a message sociable, it also makes it easier to do …show more content…
Factual research mixed with a great story give people something to talk about. The great story makes them want to continue exploring the message being portrayed while the factual evidence gives them something believable to explore. People feel more confident about sharing ideas and stories that they know to be true. Readers will not give much weight to a post simply because the person who wrote it is funny and interesting. Making the story enjoyable is only half of the work. The rest of the story must support the writers claims, jokes, and ideas with information that can be proven true. A writer who can take scientific information and make it funny and interesting is cleaver. Rehmeyer utilizes the work of Dodds and Watts intellectually while still making it understandable to her audience. It’s important to note that Rehmeyer uses words that are known by her readers. As a science journalist with her background, her vocabulary is expected to be much broader. She focuses on making her work relatable and understandable instead of studious and